title: Frailty and health-related quality of life among residents of long-term care facilities.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the prevalence and relationship of frailty and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among residents of long-term care [nursing homes (NH) and assisted living (AL)] facilities.
  
  
  METHODS
  Residents of NH and AL facilities in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, were recruited 1/2009-6/2010 and assessed for frailty (gait speed, unintended weight loss, grip strength), comorbidity (Charlson index), and HRQOL [Short Form (SF)-36].
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among 137 participants, 85% were frail. Frail residents were older, had more comorbidities (2.0 vs. 0, p < .001) and lower mean SF-36 Physical Component Score (PCS, 32 vs. 48, p < .001). Following adjustments for age, sex, and comorbidities, compared to nonfrail residents, frail residents had lower SF-36 PCS (mean difference -14.7, 95% CI. -19.3,-10.1, p < .001). Frailty, comorbidity, and HRQOL did not differ between NH and AL facilities.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Frail residents had lower HRQOL, suggesting that preventing frailty may lead to better HRQOL among residents of long-term care facilities.
authors.affiliation: University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA.
authors.forename: Amrit
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kanwar
authors.forename: Mandeep
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.forename: Ryan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lennon
authors.forename: Kalyan
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ghanta
authors.forename: Sheila M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: McNallan
authors.forename: Véronique L
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Roger
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D040561:Assisted Living Facilities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015897:Comorbidity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D016330:Frail Elderly / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008134:Long-Term Care; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011788:Quality of Life; D014922:Wisconsin
keywords: assisted living facilities; frailty; long-term care; nursing homes; quality of life